Published by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

Summary:  The three voices that “tell it” belong to Loretta Little, a sharecropper’s daughter growing up in Mississippi from 1927 to 1930; Loretta’s younger brother Roly, who narrates from 1942 to 1950; and Roly’s daughter, Aggie B., whose years span 1962 to 1968.  Inspired by the oral tradition, their narratives of hardship, poverty, love, and fights for civil rights are told in their own voices, supplemented by poems and illustrations.  Includes an author’s note; an illustrator’s note; additional information on the dramatic form; information on sharecroppers; thumbnail portraits and descriptions of real-life people who appear in the Littles’ stories; and a list of resources for further reading and sharing.  224 pages; grades 5-8.

Pros:  The Pinkneys have produced another work of art that is sure to get some attention at awards time.  The monologues are designed for reading aloud, and could be performed all together, or as individual pieces.  The poems and illustrations tie all three narratives together beautifully.

Cons:  I would have liked the information on the dramatic form at the beginning of the book.  I read this as one would a regular novel, and found it a bit of a slog.  It’s much more lively when considering it as a performance piece.

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Published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux

Summary:  When Henry arrives at Riverview in September of 1939, he is six years old, and has been deaf from an illness since the age of 3.  His parents have been advised to institutionalize him, and after he failed the admissions test for the state school for the deaf (he refused to blow out candles when an administrator tried to communicate that instruction to him), he’s been placed at the Riverview Home for the Feebleminded.  Unable to communicate or to understand what is happening to him, Henry tries to make friends and survive his days there, witnessing the abuse that other boys suffer for minor infractions.  His family tries to visit him once a year, but is not always able to afford the bus fare.  After World War II starts, a conscientious objector named Victor is assigned to Riverview, and befriends Henry.  Victor reaches out to Henry’s family, and is instrumental in convincing them that their son belongs at home.  Henry’s older sister learns about sign language, and after five years at Riverview, Henry is finally able to come home again and begin to learn to read, write, and speak.  Includes notes on the poetic forms used in this novel in verse; a lengthy author’s note about the boy in her husband’s family who inspired this story, as well as poems written by another family member about this boy.  272 pages; grades 4-7.

Pros:  Both Henry’s story and Victor’s were fascinating, and the intersection of their lives was a great relief after the first part of the story at Riverview.  Helen Frost’s poetry brings the story to life, and the back matter makes it even more poignant.

Cons:  I would have been interested in learning more about how Victor became a conscientious objector.  It sounded pretty simple from the story, but as a Quaker, I know this is not always an easy process.

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